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Played from a third-person perspective, the game takes place in Washington D.C. seven months after its predecessor, in which a civil war between survivors and villainous bands of marauders breaks out.[1] In the game, players can cooperate with each other to complete objectives. The game will also feature raids, which can be completed by up to eight players.[2]

Seven months after the Green Poison outbreak, several Strategic Homeland Division (SHD) agents are defending a civilian settlement from a bandit attack when the SHD Network, the system controlling their advanced technology and communications, suddenly shuts down and they receive a Division distress call from Washington D.C. The player’s Agent makes their way to the city where the Division and the remains of the local Joint Task Force have set up their base of operations in the White House. After defeating an attack on the White House shortly after arriving in the city, the Agent is briefed on the general situation by Manny Ortega, the Division controller for D.C. The Agent learns that much of the country’s leadership is either dead or missing and that much of the city is under the control of three main enemy factions: the Hyenas, a loosly organized group of several gangs, criminals, and anarchists who seek to take advantage of the chaos, the Outcasts, a fanatical group made up of the survivors of the various quarantine zones around the city who seek to exact revenge on those they believe responsible for their imprisonment and eventual infection, and the True Sons, a highly organized and ruthless group of former Joint Task Force personal, paramilitaries, and other traitors and mutineers, led by former JTF officer Colonel Antwon Ridgeway, who seek to gain control over the entire capital. Ortega instructs the Agent to work with fellow Agent Alani Kelso to help assist civilian settlements, fight the various enemy groups, and restore the SHD network. Meanwhile, Ortega and Kelso uncover information that a cure to Green Poison might be located somewhere in the city, and that President Ellis may have survived the crash of Air Force One and is being held by one of the city's factions. Kelso is reluctant to waste time and resources to rescue Ellis, but Ortega points out that his security clearance may be needed to access the cure.

The Agent continues to work to liberate city districts and eventually manages to find and rescue Ellis from Hyena custody. Ellis confirms that a cure to not just Green Poison, but all viral infections, exists but he can only access it with a special briefcase he had with him on Air Force One. However, the briefcase is in the possession of the True Sons who are holding it in their main base at the United States Capitol. With the Capitol too fortified to assault yet, the Agent works to strengthen the Division's forces while continuing to weaken the other factions. Eventually, the Agent is able to restore the SHD Network, connecting all Division agents nationwide and Ellis promises to restore the United States no matter the cost. With the tide turning against them, the Hyenas, True Sons, and Outcasts retreat to their final strongholds.

With the help of civilian survivors and the JTF, the Agent assaults the strongholds and is able to eliminate the leadership of all of the factions while recovering Ellis' briefcase. However, as the Agent and the Division celebrate their victory, a new faction, the technologically advanced private security contractor Black Tusk, invades the city. Many of D.C.'s landmarks are quickly seized and Ellis goes missing, leaving the Agent to head out once again to repel the Black Tusk invasion.

The game was developed by Massive Entertainment.[3] Evaluating the feedback from players regarding the first game, Massive Entertainment planned to include more game content at launch and improve the endgame.[4] The game's endgame development was prioritized by Massive Entertainment after hearing players' complaints from the first game.[5] The developers have said that the game's main campaign will take around 40 hours to beat, making it twice as long as the original game.[6]

The game was announced on March 9, 2018, by Ubisoft, with the first gameplay footage being premiered at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2018 in June 2018.[7] At the Expo, Ubisoft confirmed that the game will be released on March 15, 2019 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.[8] A private beta was launched prior to the game's release. The beta started on February 7, 2019 and ended four days later on February 11.[9] After the game's release, three episodes of downloadable content, which add new story content and gameplay modes, will be released for all players for free.[10]

To set The Division 2 apart from the first game in the series, Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft spent part of the development process revamping the game's weapons based on player feedback. The development team also spent a great deal of time reworking the game's mod system, alongside class specializations.[11] In an interview, director Mathias Karlson said that the development team wanted "Washington to feel as realistic as possible," and that architectural accuracy, as well as realistic weapon sounds, played a large role in that. He said that the team hired and used a number of professional military advisors to help them recreate Washington D.C. and key sections of the game.[12]

Tom Clancy's The Division 2 received "generally favorable reviews" from critics for the PS4 and PC and "mixed or average" reviews for the Xbox One, according to review aggregator Metacritic.

Destructoid praised the game for its tight, satisfying gameplay, summarizing its review with: "Impressive effort with a few noticeable problems holding it back. Won't astound everyone, but is worth your time and cash."[16] In its 9/10 review, Game Informer wrote that "Thrilling combat, a great loot loop, and a strong endgame elevate this Tom Clancy shooter to new heights."[17]

PC Gamer gave it a score of 82/100, calling it a "packed, rewarding, and frequently thrilling looter shooter that should have a bright future."[18] In its 4.5/5 review, GamesRadar+ wrote: "The Division 2 is a seriously accomplished looter shooter, with a gameplay loop that keeps on giving, and an endgame that will keep you playing for months (or years) to come."[19]